An Iconic Destination
Kathryn Otto travelled to the shores of the Arabian Gulf to experience the authentic local culture and the finest hospitality at Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental and to meet General Manager, Michael Koth
Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, Abu Dhabi offers unparalleled luxury and world-class accommodation. Since its opening in 2005, this opulent hotel has welcomed VIP guests, heads of state and royal families from around the globe, delivering a level of service truly befitting royalty.
A German Swiss national with over 45 years of extensive experience in the hospitality industry, Michael Koth steers the ship of The Palace.
Here, Kathryn Otto meets the former ‘Middle East General Manager of the Year’ award winner to learn more about Abu Dhabi’s landmark destination.
Leading a luxury resort in Abu Dhabi is a unique experience. How would you describe your role?
I like to describe myself as a seasoned hotelier. Having initially trained as a chef, I went on to work in the rooms division and sales and marketing. My role is to make an impact on people. It gives me great satisfaction when customers check out and they are crying happy tears, especially families with children. When you can create a bond with holidaymakers and they can’t wait to return, you know you are on the right path.
Mandarin Oriental hotels have collaborated with a number of interior designers including Candy & Candy in London and Joyce Wang in Bangkok. Each property seems to translate global trends
to suit the local area, with a design nod to your Oriental heritage. Who
did you work with on this property?
Our designers, US based Champalimaud Design, were chosen by the company and have worked for multiple Mandarin Oriental properties.
We chose Silver Fox Studios from Singapore to create the lobby which is all marble and granite with gold ceilings and chandeliers. It’s the regal part of the palace and was designed and opened in early 2000’s when there was a particular expectation of what luxury meant at that time, more driven by opulence.
Today luxury is more defined as experiential, more personalised and individual, so the design brief to the designer for the restaurant was to let the customer see what’s going on. There are pink trees and lighting installations, which are quite daring. We wanted to be feminine and pay homage to Middle Eastern values. Like in every country, society is driven by the ladies who decide where to go. We wanted eyesight to be set at a certain level, not necessarily looking at the ceiling and admiring the gold but admiring the whole design concept and how it’s brought together.
Transitioning that thought into the guestrooms, interior design company Champalimaud Design brought to life the suites, turning them from their palatial “old world” design to something modern and contemporary, yet maintaining the Middle Eastern feel.
Luxury travellers have high expectations. How do you and your team ensure a world-class experience?
This is what we do. We try not to script things. This starts with the employees, who attend a 3-4 day course to understand what the hotel, brand and customer experience are about and to learn what is dear to us and what we believe is dear to our guests.
We try to create surprise and delight for our customers who have travelled to many destinations. For instance, you could be having breakfast, and then you are surprised by a bird of prey flying around outside, and Alex (our resident Falconer) will invite you to film as the eagle, owl or falcon lands on his glove, creating “wow” moments for Instagram.
Parents are happy for their children to spend lots of time at the Kid’s Palace, as they can spend time together as a family and do watersports, tennis or play football at the Manchester City Academy.
Our Club Lounge has 6 different rooms with 6 different styles, where you can enjoy all the quietness you want, play the piano or enjoy the outdoor private beach. The sunset views are amazing.
Your spa is unlike any other I’ve seen.
When you open the doors you are in a truly Arabian space inspired by Moroccan design, with colonnades and incredibly intricate ceilings. You’ve also got a 6-6 person hamam and 9 treatment rooms that are able to cater for you and your group and its somewhere you can spend a whole day.
Our spa is also making a mark locally. Our residents use it a lot, but it is also well thought of in the local community. When you realise you are attracting 60% of your business from the local residents, it reinforces that we are on the right track.
We have 79 nationalities who work for us, and we want to be as authentic as possible, so our Balinese therapist offers genuine Balinese therapies and our Thai therapist offers more Thai influenced treatments.
Last night we experienced Strawfire by Ross Shonhan and the food was exceptional. How important do you feel the dining experience is for guests and what experience does each restaurant offer?
It’s about diversity. We could ask ourselves ‘when is too much too much?’. When you stay in a resort, you don’t want to always eat in the same restaurant. You want choice, so we offer that choice to hotel residents and the local residents. What differentiates us? Every single restaurant you visit has a concept that is carefully curated between design and culinary offering.
When you ate at Strawfire, you would have seen a significant amount of local residents dining, so it shows you that the local clientele is hungry for new experiences, wanting to explore new culinary concepts. The intent of the design when you get to Strawfire is that you go through a journey; you are smelling the rice straw, you see the fire and you understand why that restaurant is called Strawfire, and I hope you left having had a delightful experience wanting to come back again. We try to build excitement with the ambience before you even sit down to eat.
Our Lebanese Terrace is amazing. Many people don’t know Lebanese dining, and are full after the starters! It’s amazing for guests to indulge. We build concepts and perception around our chefs. In our Sand & Koal restaurant on the beach, we have the incredibly talented Jack, who cooks with his Australian spirit, an Aussie cuisine style. Then we have this talented chef, George in Broadway, who brings comfort food - British with a little French influence and American elements - to life. It’s just amazing! In Broadway you are in the midst of Les Miserable, Phantom of the Opera, designed purposely.
The hotel is the perfect backdrop for a dream wedding.
The weddings here are grand. If guests want to have a horse, a camel or an elephant then they can have it! If they want the whole palace to turn red, then that’s what happens. I think it’s important to know that the hotel is built on an event centre. The whole space of the property is built on a massive ballroom for 1100 people. Special events are popular here; we host engagements, destination weddings, birthdays and anniversaries. People use this hotel as a backdrop for celebrating something meaningful and special.
To offer a personal example, my wife knows that I am the typical husband who forgets wedding anniversaries and on one occasion she reminded me on the very day itself. I wondered what to do, and so asked the team to surprise me with a table for two, decorated nicely in one of our outdoor islands with palm trees. They set up welcome cocktails in the lounge, followed by a meal in this great spot. We had the sunset and wonderful illuminations sitting under palm trees on the grass, being served food from the lounge; it was one of the most intimate and romantic experiences in a public environment that was curated just for us. We really curate your event for you.
Hungry for more?
Read up on the latest news, delicious eats, travel treats and seasonal style trends in FEATURES, or browse a curated selection of our FEATURED PRODUCTS, meander through our guide to the finest things to do in Cheshire and beyond in WHATS ON or partake in our COMPETITIONS.
About The CHESHIRE Magazine
We are the definitive guide to luxury lifestyle in the North West. Latest news, delicious eats, travel treats and seasonal style trends. The Cheshire Magazine is the largest luxury lifestyle title for the North West of England, dropping directly through the letterboxes of VIP subscribers from the Wirral to Greater Manchester plus all the villages and towns in between and digitally available as a subscription in print and digital on issuu.com worldwide. We specialise in connecting luxury brands to likeminded consumers.
If you are interested on how you can partner with The CHESHIRE Magazine, read more about us. Or get in touch to find out more about marketing, featuring or partnering with the Cheshire Magazine in print or online.
